Bullying, Cyberbullying and Homophobia

“Bullying is a type of behavior that intends to
harm or disturb someone, occurs repeatedly over
time, and involves an imbalance of power. Such
behaviors may be physical, such as hitting or
stealing; verbal, such as teasing or name calling;
or psychological, such as socially isolating
students. The key component is intimidation, with
the more powerful person or group targeting the
less powerful one.”
Nicole Danforth, MD, in “Bullying: What It is and
Why Kids Do It”
 Cyberbullying
is willful and
repeated harm inflicted
through the use of computers,
cell phones, and other
electronic devices.
 Homophobia
is a fear or dislike
of lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, queer or
questioning (LGBTQQ)
individuals.
by Cyberbullying Research Center
 Victims
of cyberbullying are at an
increased risk for traditional bullying
victimization, substance use, and
school problems.
TRUE

According to an article published in the journal Deviant
Behavior, victims of cyberbullying were significantly more
likely to report experiences with traditional bullying, to use
illicit substances, and to have other problems at school.

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2008). Cyberbullying: An
Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to Offending and
Victimization. Deviant Behavior, 29(2), 129-156.
A
school is protected from legal
liability and not required to
intervene in cyberbullying incidents
that occur away from campus.
FALSE

While this can be a challenging issue, a number of federal district court cases have
attempted to clarify the conditions under which school officials can discipline students
for off-campus behavior. For example, in J.S. v. Bethlehem Area School District (2000),
the court made it clear that schools do have the authority to discipline students when
speech articulated or behavior committed off-campus results in a clear disruption of
the school environment. If any off-campus behavior results in a substantial disruption
at school, they can intervene.

Moreover, if students are denied the opportunity to learn in a safe environment
(because of cyberbullying), school officials who fail to act may also be found liable
under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and/or Title IX of the Educational Amendments of
1972.
 Most
victims of cyberbullying tell an
adult (parent or teacher) about their
experience.
FALSE

According to Bullying Beyond the Schoolyard: Preventing and
Responding to Cyberbullying, only about 40% of middle school victims
of cyberbullying told their parents and less than 30% told a teacher.
The book also points out that these numbers are much improved from
just 4 years ago when fewer than 15% of victims told an adult.

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2009). Bullying beyond the Schoolyard:
Preventing and Responding to Cyberbullying. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications (ISBN: 9781412966894).
 Research
has shown that victims of
cyberbullying suffer from anger,
frustration, and sadness.
TRUE

According to a study published in the Journal of
School Violence, victims of cyberbullying were
angry (30.6%), frustrated (34%), and sad (21.8%).
 Cyberbullying
does not result in
physical harm to victims because it
occurs (and is contained) completely
online.
FALSE

While most of the harm associated with cyberbullying is
emotional, relational, or psychological (all important harms to
prevent) there are many examples where cyberbullying has
resulted in very serious physical consequences for victims.
The most extreme example of this is the several cases
reported in the media of adolescents committing suicide after
experiencing cyberbullying. While the cyberbullying alone
probably did not cause the suicide, it clearly was an important
contributing factor in several incidents.
 Cyberbullying
United States.
is just a problem in the
FALSE

There have been a number of recent studies which have demonstrated that cyberbullying is
also a problem in a number of other countries (Australia, Canada, Sweden, Turkey). Below
are some examples of recent journal articles that address cyberbullying in other countries. In
addition, several other studies are underway exploring cyberbullying across the world.

Aricak, T., et al. (2008). Cyberbullying among Turkish adolescents. CyberPsychology and
Behavior, 11 (3), 253-261
Fleming, M. J., Greentree, S., Cocotti-Muller, D., Elias, K. A., and Morrison, S. (2006). Safety in
cyberspace: Adolescents' safety and exposure online. Youth and Society, 38(2), 135-154
Li, Q. (2007). Bullying in the new playground: Research into cyberbullying and
Cybervictimisation. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 23(4), 435-454.
Slonje, R. and Smith, P. K. (2008). Cyberbullying: Another main type of bullying? Scandinavian
Journal of Psychology, 49, 147-154
 Victims
report that they are primarily
cyberbullied by strangers.
FALSE

According to Bullying Beyond the Schoolyard: Preventing and
Responding to Cyberbullying, 21.1% of victims said the
cyberbully was a friend, 20% said it was an ex-friend, and 26.5%
said it was someone else from school. Only 6.5% said the
cyberbully was a stranger.

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2009). Bullying beyond the
Schoolyard: Preventing and Responding to Cyberbullying.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications (ISBN: 9781412966894).
 Traditional
schoolyard bullies are
also likely to be cyberbullies.
TRUE

According to an article published in Deviant Behavior,
traditional bullies are 2.5 times more likely to be a
cyberbully than someone who does not bully offline.

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2008). Cyberbullying: An
Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to Offending and
Victimization. Deviant Behavior, 29(2), 129-156.
 Boys
are more likely to be victims of
cyberbullying than girls.
FALSE

While there are some differences found in the research, overall it appears that girls are slightly
more likely to report being the victim of cyberbullying than boys. More studies have reported
either that girls are more likely to be victims or that there are no gender differences in
cyberbullying. When looking at lifetime experiences versus more recent experiences, the
prevalence rates are even higher for girls. For more information, see the articles below.

Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. W. (2008). Cyberbullying: An Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to
Offending and Victimization. Deviant Behavior, 29(2), 129-156.
Lenhart, A. (2007, June 27). Cyberbullying and Online Teens. Washington, D.C.: Pew Internet &
American Life Project.
Li, Q. (2005). New Bottle but Old Wine: A Research of Cyberbullying in Schools. Computers in
Human Behavior, 23(4), 1777-1791.
Ybarra, M. L., Diener-West, M., & Leaf, P. J. (2007). Does online harassment constitute bullying? An
exploration of online harassment by known peers and online-only contacts. Journal of Adolescent
Health, 41, S51-58.
 Research
has shown that utilizing
blocking and filtering software
decreases the likelihood of
experiencing cyberbullying.
FALSE

According to an article published in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, using
filtering software is not significantly related to a decreased chance of Internet
harassment victimization. Some adults believe that by simply purchasing and installing
such software, they have "done their part" in safeguarding their child's participation
online. This is naive and unwise. It is really important to actively participate in your
child's online experiences, establish rules, and informally monitor their activities.
Software solutions only go so far in controlling certain actions in cyberspace, and can
be circumvented by a motivated adolescent.

Ybarra, M. L., & Mitchell, J. K. (2004). Online aggressor/targets, aggressors and targets:
A comparison of associated youth characteristics. Journal of Child Psychology and
Psychiatry, 45, 1308-1316.
 “I
always say how bullied I am,
but no one listens. What do I
have to do so people will listen
to me?”
 14
year old gay student
Jamey Rodemeyer on
September 9th, 2011 –
nine days before he
committed suicide in
Buffalo, NY.
Jamey had been bullied at
school and online for
months.
Jamey Rodemeyer

On his Formspring account, a
website that allows
anonymous posts, one post
said “JAMIE IS STUPID, GAY, FAT
AND UGLY. HE MUST DIE!“.
Another read, “I wouldn't care
if you died. No one would. So
Jamey Rodemeyer
just do it :) It would make
everyone WAY more happier!“.
 “No
one liked her, so I thought
it would be a funny joke to
create the fake Facebook
page”

Quote by Taylor Wynn from
Estero High School, (Florida)
in January 2011, describing
why she created the fake
facebook page that included
a photo of the victim’s head
placed on top of a nude girl’s
body, a photo of a man’s
genitalia near her open
mouth and comments about
sexual acts.
 “You
punk you better stay
away from my girl or else I will
come and kill you”
 14
year old from Jersey City
arrested for cyberbullying on
facebook in 2011. He sent messages
to the two 12 year old victims
calling them “gay,” “fat” and “punk”
and threatened to kill them because
he believed the other boys were
interested in a girl he liked.
 “Jumping
sorry.”
off the gw bridge

18 year old Tyler Clementi’s
last facebook entry after
learning that his gay sexual
encounter was streamed
live to 150 twitter followers
by his room mate Dharun
Ravi.
Tyler Clementi

Ravi knew that his
roommate was engaging in
gay sexual activities and he
decided to access a
webcam through Skype
that he had set up on his
own computer in the room
shared with the victim.
Tyler Clementi
 “I
don’t know what to do anymore,
all I did was go out with that
popular football player and now I
feel like they will always be there to
remind me that I shouldn’t have
done what I did because I’m not
popular enough”

Phoebe Prince a 15-year-old
immigrant ‘new girl’ from
South Hadley High School.
She hung herself after being
called an “Irish slut” and
constantly harassed via text
messages, Facebook and
social networking sites.
Phoebe Prince
 The
bullying was done by
nine jealous teenage girls
from Massachusetts who
resented her dating the
popular football player.
Phoebe Prince
 “I
can’t believe all of my
personal info including my
phone number and my address
were posted on Craigslist, omg
what am I going to do my
reputation is ruined forever”
 17
year old girl whose
photos and personal
information were
posted on Craigslist
by the ex-wife of her
mothers boyfriend
without her
knowledge.

The post implied that she was
looking for a sexual
encounter.
The girl received lewd
messages and photographs
from men she didn’t know.
She also received
pornographic photos to her
cell phone.
 “No
child should have to
endure the cyberbullying I
endured. I was scared, hurt
and confused. I didn’t know
why it was happening to me”

Kylie Kenney, after learning of
the website “Kill Kylie
Incorporated” that was filled
with homophobic remarks. In
2006, students sent Instant
messages from Kylie’s screen
name to girls asking them out
on dates. Because of this
impersonation, she changed
schools twice.
Kylie Kenney
 “Everybody
in O’Fallon knows
how you are. You are a bad
person and everyone hates you.
Have a shitty rest of your life.
The world would be a better
place without you”
 Myspace
message
causing 13 year old
Megan to commit
suicide in 2006.
Megan Meier

The mother of an ex-friend of
Megan created a fake MySpace
account and pretended to be a
good-looking boy, Josh Evans.
After a while, ‘Josh’ began to
send cruel messages to Megan
and said that he no longer
wanted to be friends with her
because she was mean.
Megan Meier
 “I
can’t believe that somebody
hates me so much that they
would create a website about
me that even has a date for
when I should be dead. Why
am I so hated? What did I do?”
 Jodi
Plumb, the 15-year-old victim
from Mansfield, England who was
cyberbullied via a website created
to insult her in 2003.
The site contained abusive stories
and pictures. Most of those stories
poked fun at her weight.
 “You’re
just a loser, I don’t want anything
to do with you. I was only joking online. I
thought it would be funny to make you
think I liked you, so you could tell me a
lot of embarrassing stories about
yourself and I would forward them to my
friends. The plan worked out perfectly,
me and my friends had a great laugh”

A popular girl saying in front
of her friends why she
cyberbullied Ryan Patrick
Halligan before he
committed suicide at 13 in
2003.
Ryan had approached her
online and tried to establish
a relationship with her
before.
Ryan Patrick Halligan
 "You're
gay, don’t ever talk
again, no one likes you, you’re
immature and dirty, go wash
your face”
 Anonymous
email
sent to David Knight
in Ontario, Canada
in 2002.
David Knight

He also found a website titled
“Welcome to the web site that
makes fun of David Knight”.
The creator of the website asked
others to join in posting lewd and
David Knight
sexual comments on the website.
He was accused of being a
pedophilia. He was also accused
of using the date rape drug on
little boys.